Cherry Creek Innovation Campus is not your ordinary high school. Principal Mark Morgan credits strong partnerships with industry and higher education as an important factor that sets the school apart from others. “These partners helped us design areas relating to the learning environment, equipment, and the curriculum”, states Principal Morgan. The school offers seven different pathways: Advanced Manufacturing, Business Services, Health & Wellness, Hospitality & Tourism, Infrastructure Engineering, Information Technology & STEAM, and Transportation.
Each pathway is designed to mimic the actual business or industry. This provides students with an excellent opportunity to try a career path to see if it is something that would like to pursue. Students who attend Cherry Creek Innovation Campus come from eight different high schools within the Cherry Creek School District, located in the Denver metro area. They can choose to take classes for college credit and/or pursue a specific industry-recognized certification.
Principal Morgan believes that career planning and focusing on students’ passion and interests are critical factors in determining if students pursue college or the workforce. He understands the crippling impact of college debt and believes that the preparation that Cherry Creek Innovation Campus provides for students will better prepare them for a productive future with a career that can sustain them.
When asked what advice would he give to other localities that are interested in high school redesign and transformation, he stated, “partnerships with higher
education, industry, and business leaders are the key for student success whether they plan to go to college or enter workforce or military after graduation.”
